Our Unexpected Journey
by Echo528
Summary: When Jennifer, Helen, Gabriella and Emily set out on a week long camping trip, they didn't expect to be thrown into Tolkien and Peter Jackson's world of the Hobbit. But, before either of the young women can realize what is going on, they find themselves embarking on a quest to reclaim Erebor, and hopefully find a way home. [Rated T] [ThorinxOC] [KilixOC] [FilixOC] [BilboxOC]
1. Table of Contents

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit or any of their respective characters and plot. I do own my OCs, and would prefer you do not steal them.**_

_**The idea of this story came to me when I was reading Loyalty, Honor, and a Willing Heart by Luinwen-2013**_

* * *

_**Table of Contents  
**_

_**1. **Table of Contents  
_

**_2._ **_Just a Simple Camping Trip  
_

**_3._ **_Waking Up in Middle-Earth Part One  
_

_**4. **Waking Up in Middle-Earth Part Two_

**_5._**_The Company_

**_6._**_Blunt the Knives_


	2. Prologue

_**Prologue- Just a Simple Camping Trip**_

"Come on guys!" An excited voice called out though the trees. Light made its way through the leaves, leaving a light pattern on the path bellow. "You're so slow!" A young woman laughed. She was of a rather average height for women and had long, light brown hair, pulled back into a pony tail. Her green eyes twinkled as she smiled. She was dressed in light brown shorts, hiking boots and a light pink t-shirt. She carried with her a back pack, filled to the brim with camping supplies.

"Don't worry Helen." Behind her walked three other girls, varying in age, all dressed in similar ways. "We'll get there."

The one who spoke looked very similar to the first girl, Helen. She was tall and had long, dark brown hair that was pulled back into a half ponytail, so that some hair still hung down her back. Her eyes were green as well, though slightly darker. She wore dark green capris, hiking boots and a brown tank top. On her own back, was a pack filled with camping supplies. Her name, as Jennifer, and she was Helen's older sister.

The next girl was named Gabriella. She was of average height and had dirty blonde hair that ended at her shoulders, and had chosen to keep it covered with a baseball cap. Her eyes were a crystal blue, that one could find themselves becoming lost in. She was dressed in longer, light brown cargo pants, hiking boots and a blue t-shirt. She also carried a camping ready back pack.

The final girl, Emily, was slightly shorter than the others. Her black hair hung in messy curls around her shoulders, and her dark brown eyes looked at the nature around her. She wore a longer pair of brown shorts than Helen, hiking boots, and a black tank top. A back pack was on her back like the others.

The four women had been friends since they were in grade school. As they grew older, it was common to find them together where ever they were. They even attended the same university after they graduated! Granted, in different fields.

Helen chose to become a teachers, while her sister favored the idea of becoming an engineer. Gabriella was studying to be a doctor and Emily an Author. Despite most of their classes being in separate areas on compass, they still found a way to have at least one class together. All four chose music as their undergrad.

As the say progressed, and the four woman walked further on, light conversation filled the air. What it was about varied from the topics of family, to school and beyond. Only when the sun began to deep below the horizon did they stop and set up camp.

Helen and Emily were in charge of pitching the tents, one for every two girls, while Gabriella started the fire and Jennifer got dinner ready.

After the meal that night, Helen called to her sister with a pleading voice.

"Jenna?" The look she gave the older girl caused her to answer warily.

"Yes?"

"Could you read to us?" Now to most, this would seem like an absolutely absurd request. Why would woman in their mid twenties and early thirties, want to be read too?

However, for these four woman it was normal. Every so often, they would gather around with a good book and read aloud to each other. Having been doing so since they were in the sixth grade, it had become like a tradition for them.

"Sure." Jennifer let out a sight of relief, half expecting her sister to ask her to do something strange. It would have been the first time. "Do any of you have a book?"

While Helen and Gabriella shook their heads, Emily's face lit up. Turning, she rummaged in her bag till she pulled out a worn old book. From the many years of use, the spin and cover were beginning to fade, and a few pages seemed as if they would fall out at any moment. Handing it to the brown haired female, they all sat back and got comfortable.

Reading the title to herself, Jennifer had to be careful not to laugh aloud. Of course Emily would bring their favorite book along with them on a camping trip. Though she supposed it was suiting, seeing as the story was an adventure that largely took place in a forest like this. So, with that, she opened to the first chapter and began to read.

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends if worms and oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort." As she read, it seemed like the world Tolkien had created in his books came alive around them.

Jennifer read in such a way, that they could clearly see the long beards of the Dwarves, or the beautiful rolling hills of the Shire. At points, they would close their eyes and let the words whisk them off to a different time or place.

By the time the fire began to die, the moon was high in the sky and Jennifer had only read half of the book.

"Alright. I think it's time we got some sleep." She said, yawning as she did so, closing the book. The others nodded and left to their respective tents. Emily and Helen together, and Gabriella with Jennifer. As they dozed off, their thoughts were filled with the world of Middle-Earth, and dreams of going on grand adventures.

The next morning, they continued on through the trees. Like before, there was merry conversation though this time it was directed more towards topics related to the Hobbit.

"If you could be any race in Middle-Earth," Emily started, walking between Helen and Gabriella. "What would you be?" Now it may be sad to say, but none of them had ever thought about that question. Sure, they had dreams of going to Middle-Earth, but they never thought about what race they would wish to be.

"I suppose I would be a Dwarf." Jennifer was the first to respond. To her, she always found the craftsmen ship of the bearded race to be quite fascinating.

"If you are one, then I'd be the same." Helen laughed lightly. Truth be told, out of all the races in Middle-Earth, she did favor the Dwarves more. Hobbits, despite the love of their books, she thought were to boring. Elves, she believed to be too perfect, and she could never be like them. Men, well she was already one and would much rather be something different. So, to her, Dwarves were the prefect choice.

"Dwarves all the way!" Gabrielle grinned. She was impressed greatly by the bravery and courage of the Dwarvish race. To be part of such people, she though would be an honor.

"I prefer Hobbits." Emily admit quietly. Unlike her friends, she wasn't as adventurous. She liked things comfortable and warm. Though, that did not mean she wasn't brave, after all. Hobbits were known to have many surprises up their sleeves.

The rest of the morning, the talked about the pros and cons of each race, arguing over what ones created better weapons (the Elves), who was the bravest (Dwarves), the best cooks (Hobbits) and the most unexpected (Men).

When lunch came around, the weather seemed to take a turn for the worse. Where sun was once shining down through the trees, clouds had blocked out. Wind had picked up and left the women shivering slightly. They couldn't help but think it strange. When they had left for their trip, they were sure to check the forecast. It was suppose to be sunny and warmer.

"We need to make shelter." Gabriella finally said, after walking for an hour in the wind. Above, it had started to sprinkle. Nodding, the others agreed.

Splitting in two groups, hoping to cover more ground, Emily and Helen went West while Gabriella and Jennifer headed East. Both groups agreed that they would stay in a close radius to each other, and would meet back together in an hour or so. Whoever found the better camping site would determine where they made camp.

As Emily and Helen trekked off the path, the trees began to thin, and the fern lessened. The rain, however, did not let up. The light sprinkle soon turned to a pour, soaking the girls to their bones. What was worse, the ground they were walking on had become a sloppy, muddy mess.

"W-we s-should h-head b-back." Helen stuttered out a suggestion, rubbing her arms in an attempt to provide herself with warmth. Unfortunately, it did not help. Beside her, Emily nodded. Turning to head back the way they had come, both women realized they had a problem. The rain was coming down so hard, they could barely see a foot in front of them!

"O-oh n-n-no." Emily stuttered. What were they suppose to do now? They couldn't just stay here. Looking at one another, they nodded and decided to push on. Walking for what felt to be another half hour, they seemed to be getting no where. Just as they were about to stop and give up, Helen slipped.

"AH!"

Hoping to stop her friends fall, Emily grabbed for the younger woman's hand, only to be pulled down with her. It seemed, that they had been walking beside a steep drop, and due to the rain they hadn't been able to see it. But now, they certainly felt it. All either one could do as they slid down the hill was reach for the other one. Just as they reached the bottom of the hill, both fell forwards and hit their heads on a rock, knocking themselves out.

Off to the East, Gabriella and Jennifer were not having much luck. Unlike the other two, the tress did not thin for them. Instead, they seemed to become closer knit together. The two women soon found themselves ducking under branches and hitting ferns out of their way. Despite the immense amount of foliage, the ground still became a muddy mess and their sight was limited.

"L-let's hope t-they others d-did b-better." Gabriella grumbled to herself, her soaking hat now in her hands. It wasn't doing much to protect her hair, and she'd rather not have something so where on her head.

"Y-yeah." Jennifer agreed. Despite their drenched clothes, the two continued on. They didn't stop till Gabriella's legs gave way beneath her. Immediately, Jennifer reached out and caught her friend, but fell to the ground in the process. To exhausted and wet to get up, the women managed to crawl over to a tree.

Leaning their backs against it's trunk, they let their eyes close and heads fall back a little. Not long after, they were out like a light.


	3. Chapter One

_**Chapter One- Waking Up in Middle-Earth Part One  
**_

"Oh, my head." Emily mumbled when she finally came too. Her head was pounding. So bad that it took her a minute or two to think clearly. When the pain had passed, she let out a sigh of relief before looking around. Now, she was expecting to see the few trees and hill that she and Helen had rolled down last night. However she was not met with such a sight.

Instead the forest that she had seen the night before, she saw that they were surrounded by large oaks. Soft grass lay under her, and a few birds were singing in the afternoon air.

"Ow." A moan from beside her, brought the black haired woman out of shock. Turning to look down, she saw Helen holding her head between her knees. She had sat up and found that she had a horrible headache. While her friend tried to recover, Emily noticed something. Helen did not look the same as last night.

Her hair was no longer up in a pony tail, and hung loosely down her back. She also no longer wore the attire she had the night before. Instead, she was dressed in a leather, hooded cloak, a dark purple tunic, brown pants, traveling boots and hide gloves. Laying beside her, in place of the back pack, was a traveling pack with a bed roll attached to the top.

"Um... Helen." She spoke slowly, trying to comprehend the changes to her friend. "I think we have a problem."

Though her head still had a dull ache, Helen looked up at her own friend only to gasp. Sitting beside her was not the Emily she had known.

True, the woman still had her messy curly black hair, but her size had changed dramatically. Even sitting down, it was noticeable. The two women used to be relatively the same height, but now it looked as though Emily was at least a head shorter than Helen. Her clothes had also changed. She now wore dark, musky green trousers, a white button up shirt, a blue jack that seemed just a little big and a leather hooded cloak. Sitting beside her was also a pack with a bed roll. But that was not what shocked Helen.

It was Emily's feet that had undergone the most drastic change, it seemed.

"Helen, are you all right?" Emily questioned, seeing the shocked look on her friends face.

"Y-you... H-how?" Helen stuttered to herself, looking between Emily's attire and her feet. "You're a Hobbit!" She finally said, eyes wide as saucers.

At first, Emily looked at her as if this was a joke. A Hobbit? Sure, she had said if she could be any race she would be a Hobbit. But that was impossible. None existed, and last she check she was clearly human.

But, she remembered how Helen's clothes had changed, and looked down at her feet. Sure enough, she no longer wore shoes, though it seemed her feet would not fit in them. For they were at least two time their old size, and on top of them was curly black hair.

"Oh my!" She gasped, looking back up at her friend. When she did, she noticed the young woman had undergone another change.

"Helen... I, I do believe you changed races too." She said, slightly uncertain.

"What do you mean?" The brown haired woman questioned, just a little afraid of what her friend might say.

"Well," Emily started slowly. "It seems you have side beard."

Eyes widening again, Helen raised her hand and felt along her cheeks. Her fingers touch something soft, like hair, that caused her to gasp. Emily was quite right. Running along her chin, starting just under the edge of her lip and ending above her ears, was the distinctly soft hair of a she-dwarf's side beard. It was light brown, like her hair, and hung down about an inch from her skin.

"T-that's not possible!" She finally stuttered out. Emily nodded, having the same thoughts. And for a good reason. It was a known fact that people just don't change races over night. Especially races that don't exist in the real world. Though, both women had a feeling they were no longer in the real world.

From where they sat, they eyed their pack warily before curiosity got the better of them. If they changed, surely their things changed too. They went through Helen's first.

Inside, there were no longer traditional camping supplies, but there was still supplies fit for traveling. They pulled out a pack of dried meat, a water flask, two stones that Emily guessed were flint, a spare tunic though this one was a lighter violet, some clasps that looked to be for braids, and spare arrows. The last set of items confused the two women, till the noticed laying not far from Helen was a bow and a quiver of arrows. Beside it, was also a sword. Not a too large of one. It was actually just the right size for Helen to wheeled with one hand, if she knew how.

Next, they looked in Emily's pack. The contents of it were rather similar to Helen's pack. There was dried meat, a water flask, flint, a spare shirt and a spare pair of pants. She also had some things that weren't in Helen's pack. A sewing kit, map and two daggers. In addition, resting not to far away from her pack was twin swords. For most they would be to small to be swords, but as it was they were Hobbit sized.

Having looked through their packs, putting everything back, the two women shared a look. It was clear that something neither of them could explained happened to them, and they needed to find some one who could help them figure it out.

Standing, Helen reached down and helped Emily up. She then began to strap her scabbard to her hip. She also put her bow in her quiver and slipped it over her shoulder before pulling on her pack. Emily was doing the same with her own swords. Once both of them were ready, they walked away from the trees.

As they did, Emily took out her map and tried to make heads and tails of it. It definitely wasn't one she commonly saw, but she had seen it before. It just so happened, that it was a map of Middle-Earth. To her, it seemed like a replica of the ones she saw on the internet.

"Having any luck with finding out where we are?" Helen asked, stopping to look at the map too.

"Well, I have really good feeling that we're in Middle-Earth," She answered slowly. Her eyes quickly scanned the map, before looking up at her surroundings. When she couldn't find any important landmarks, she looked back down. "Though I have no idea where."

"I may be able to assist in that." Some one spoke from behind them. Turning, the women looked and saw an older man. He had a tall pointed blue hat, a long grey cloak, a silver scarf over which his long grey beard hung down below his waist, and immense black boots. In his hand, he carried a staff. As he looked down at the she-dwarf and hobbit, there was a soft look on his face. "Though, if I may ask, who are you?"

Quickly recovering from her slight shock, seeing as she had a pretty good idea she knew who this man was, Helen remember her manners. Quickly bowing she introduced herself, Emily following her lead.

"Helen,"

"And Emily,"

"At your service." The both spoke together, straightening.

"Gandalf the Grey, at yours." The man laughed lightly at how well timed the two women were, but then gave them a curious look. "What are a she-dwarf and hobbit doing out here together, if you do not mind me asking?"

"Oh!" Emily blinked, realizing that to any one that saw them, her and Helen must have been a strange sight. A dwarf and hobbit (one with weapons at that) staring at a map was not an every day sort of thing. "Well, we're good friends, and... Um..." She looked at the brown haired woman for help.

"We were traveling with two of our other friends and seemed to have gotten lost." She started to come up with a clever little lie on the spot. Helen doubted any one would believe them if they were to tell the truth, so she embellished it slightly. "You see, we're from far away-"

"Very, very far." Emily added.

"And we ran into a storm last night." Helen continued. "In the thick of it, we some how managed to be split apart and have absolutely no clue where we are." Once she had finished her quick explanation, Gandalf looked at the them with an expression that suggested the he didn't really believe them. But, as it seemed that these two women were genuinely confused as to where they were, and how the got there, he decided there could be no harm in helping them.

"Well, that certainly does not sound good. But to answer your earlier question," He smiled softly. "You are in the Shire, close to the borders of the Eastfarthing woods."

"Oh my." Both the women seemed slightly shocked at hearing this. Did they really travel that far last night, and if they were here, where were Gabriella and Jennifer? Quickly composing her self, Emily looked up at the Wizard.

"Mister Gandalf, you wouldn't be able to help us reunite with our friends," There was a hopeful tone to her voice as she asked this. "Would you?"

Thinking for a moment, though a very short one, Gandalf nodded to himself. Though these women were certainly strange, they had weapons with them, and most likely knew how to use them. He would talk to Thorin, but he believed they would be a good addition to their company.

"I believe I may." He smiled, gesturing for them to walk with him. As they did, he explained what he had in mind. "You see, I am part of a company. One that wishes to go on a quest. I believe that you two ladies would be an asset to have with us, and if you do join us I also believe we could help find your friends."

Looking at each other, Emily and Helen were sharing very similar thoughts. The first, was that they didn't seem to be able to remember much of what happened in Tolkien's books, or Peter Jackson's movies. The second, was if they should go on this quest with the Wizard.

"What, type of quest?" Helen asked, hoping to get a little more information from the mysterious wizard. Though, it seemed like she was having no such luck.

"That, my dear, I am afraid I can not tell you quite yet. You will simply have to trust me till then." Gandalf expalined.

Sharing another look, the two women made a quick decision.

"Alright then." Emily smiled lightly, resting her hand on the hilt of one of her swords. "You have given us no reason to distrust you so far, and I doubt you will either."

"We will join you on this quest, if the others in your company will allow it." Helen finished, a smile on her own lips.

Feeling rather pleased that he was able to gain the help of these two brave women, Gandalf nodded as well. Now that he had gotten them to agree to come on the quest, he just needed to get Thorin and the others to agree.

"Come along then," He gestured for them to follow him as they left the tree line. "We're expected some where and mustn't be late."


	4. Chapter Two

_**Chapter Two- Waking Up in Middle-Earth Part Two**_

Far away from the Shire, Helen and Emily, Gabriella and Jennifer were come around. Seeing as they simply fell asleep, while their friends were knocked out, they had no headaches. Though they were incredibly sore.

"My back." Gabriella whined quietly, eyes still closed, as she wiggled around. It seems in her sleep, she had fallen down onto Jennifer's lap. Said woman, was also in a slight amount of pain.

"My feet." While her friend moved around slightly, she chose to stay still with her head resting against the tree trunk. Unfortunately, both women realized they had to open their eyes and find the others.

Rolling off her friend, Gabriella stood up and opened her eyes, just as Jennifer pushed herself up and did the same. When both of them had blinked the sleep from their eyes, they were met with a surprising sight. Neither one looked like they should.

Gabriella, to start with, had her wavy hair pulled back out of her face slightly. Her hiking clothes were gone, having been replaced with a pair of brown pants, a russet red colored tunic with black accents, a leather hooded cloak, iron gauntlets and sturdy looking boots. Her back pack now looked like an old pack, and at the top of it was a bedroll. Attached to her hip, was sword scabbard, and she could feel small daggers in her boots.

Jennifer didn't look to different. Her brown hair hung loosely down her back. She now wore very dark brown pants, a dark green tunic with gold accents, a leather hooded cloak, iron gauntlets as well and tough boots. Her back pack had also changed, having a bedroll now attached to it. Much like Gabriella, she had a sword scabbard attached to her hip, but could also feel a short blade attached to the other side.

Both women looked at each other, wide eyed, before pointing and exclaiming in perfect unison.

"You're a Dwarf!"

At hearing the others words, their hands flew to their cheeks and sure enough they felt a side beard. Jennifer's was not as long as Gabriella's, hanging barely half an inch down from her chin, but it was darker making it more noticeable. Gabriella's though very light in color, was certainly thick feeling. Despite never having facial hair before, both women admitted to themselves they never would have noticed their beards, if the other one had not pointed it out.

"What in bloody hell happened last night?" Gabriella finally questioned. She was pretty sure she was human when their small group of friends split up, not a she-dwarf.

Jennifer was having similar thoughts, but they soon became clouded with worry.

"Where are Emily and Helen?" It didn't seem like they two younger women were any where near here, and if they weren't, where were they? Immediately, Jennifer started to panic. "What if something happened to them? They could be lost, or worse, hurt!" As she started pacing, muttering to her self about all the bad things that could have happened to her little sister and her friend, Gabriella tried to calm her down.

"Jen... Jen! JEN!" It took three tries before she had managed to gain her attention. When she did, the blonde was aware of the worry gathering behind those green eyes. Touching Jennifer's arm in a comforting way, she tried to calm her down and get to focus on the immediate problem. "I'm sure they're fine. They're strong and can take care of themselves."

That seemed to calm her down a bit, and Jennifer gave a small nod. Her friend was right. She shouldn't be worrying like this. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and silently counted to ten. Once she did, she found she had calmed down.

"You're right." Immediately, Jennifer took off her pack and began to search through it. There was dried meat, a water flask, flint, a spare tunic though this one was brown, some braid clasps and daggers.

Gabriella's pack held exactly the same things. Though, her tunic was very dark blue and she also carried a map with her. Keeping the map out, they put all their things away before sitting on the ground.

"So, do you suppose..." Gabriella trailed off, her gaze on the map. Jennifer was looking at it too. Both women found it familiar, knowing what it showed. They had studied similar maps when they were bored.

"Yeah." The older woman nodded, knowing they both had come to the same conclusion. "We're in Middle-earth." Groaning, the blonde fell backwards.

"How in bloody hell did we get here?" Jennifer followed her friend, the two of them staring up at the trees. Instead of answering though, she shrugged. Neither of them could come up with an idea of how they came to Tolkiens world.

Beside, what Jennifer was more concerned about was finding her sister. Even though she was only three years older than the twenty four year old, and almost out of University, she worried for her sibling. Ever since she could remember, they always knew where the other one was.

But now? She had no idea and it bothered her fiercely. Sighing, she pushed her self up, picking up her pack.

"Calm on." She helped Gabriella up off the ground. "Let's see where we are." The blonde nodded, grabbing her own pack before holding up the map. Both women looked over it, this time glancing around for familiar landmarks. After a couple of minutes, they came to a conclusion.

"I'd say we're some where around here." She pointed to a small road. "On the Great East Road between Hobbiton and Rivendell." Nodding, Jennifer agreed.

"If that's so, we should head east, to Rivendell." Using her finger, she tracked a path to the last homely house. "There we could seek the guidance of Lord Elrond." Now it was Gabriella's turn to nod.

"You're right. He could help us find Helen and Emily, as well as a way home."

"My thoughts exactly." Folding up the map, the two of them nodded before looking up at the sun. By doing so they determined the direction they needed to head. With that, they were off.


	5. Chapter Three

_**Chapter Three- The Company  
**_

While Helen, Emily and Gandalf walked through the Shire, they converse lightly. Not about anything really. The two woman would ask the Wizard questions about Middle-earth (of course things they didn't already know the answer to) and he would ask them about their companions. Though hesitant at first, they eventually told them about Jennifer and Gabriella.

"Well, worry not my dears." Gandalf smiled as the two women traveling with him as they walked up a hill. The sky above them was darkening slowly, and further up the hill Helen could see eight figures making their way to a Hobbit hole. "We'll reunite you with your sister, Helen, and your friends, Emily."

Soon, the three had made their way to the Hobbit hole.

"Oh. Hello Mister Gandalf!" One of the figures turned around, and Helen realized they were Dwarves. He had his redish brown hair braid in such a way it looked like a star. Behind him, were the others. Some had brown hair, some had brown other red, but all had a handful of things in common. Their hair and beards were in braids, and wore tunics of various colors, as well as leather cloaks and coats.

"Ah, hello Nori." The Wizard smiled. At hearing his voice, the others turned around and gave him wide smiles.

"Good to see you made it!" One said, his beard and hair grey, and in an intricate braid across his face and head.

"But who is this with you?" Asked another. He had red hair, and a series of shorter braids decorating his beard.

"Oh," Gandalf said, seeming to remember the two women behind him, though he never had forgotten them. "May I introduce Lady Helen and Lady Emily." Moving to the side, he revealed the women to the men. Not forgetting to be polite, they bowed and spoke at the same time.

"At your service." Straightening, they gave the men before them a smile.

"And ladies, may I introduce Nori, Ori, Dori, Oin, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur and Bombur." In turn with their names, each Dwarf bowed. Nori was the first Dwarf who had spoken, Dori the second and Gloin the third. Ori looked to be the youngest of them, with a brown beard with very little braids. Oin had grey hair with two large braids in his beard. Bofur wore a funny hat, and his hair was done in two braids. Bifur had black hair that was fading to grey, and Emily could see an axe lodged in his head. Finally Bombur was the larges with long red hair and a braid that hung down around his chest before coming back up to his head.

"These are a few of the Dwarves embarking on the quest." Gandalf explained to Helen and Emily. One of the Dwarves opened his mouth to question why the she-Dwarf and hobbit were with the Wizard, but the answer came before they could asked. "These women will be accompany us on our journey."

And before they could ask more, he leaned around them and rang the door bell. From some where inside the Hobbit hole, Helen was sure she heard some one shouting at them.

"There's nobody home!" They had shouted, causing Emily to look at her friend, trying not to laugh. "Go away and bother somebody else. There's far to many Dwarves in my dining room as it is." As who she could only assume was the owner of the house shouted, Helen couldn't help but glance at Gandalf. On the old Wizard's face was an amused smile. All she could do at seeing it, was shake her head.

"If this is some clot-head's idea of a joke," The house's owner laughed dryly, and Emily could her him making his way to the door. "I can only say it is in very poor taste." Just as the door opened, all the Dwarves fell on top of when another.

"Get off you big lump!" The women heard Gloin yell, and laughed lightly at the sight in front of them. While the eight Dwarves argued and tried to get off the ground, the other three figures out side the Hobbit hole turned their attention to whom opened the door.

He was a Hobbit, just a little bit taller than Emily, with curly blonde hair and blue eyes. He was dressed in a robe, trousers and a old shirt. At seeing him, Emily could not help but think he looked cute.

"Gandalf." He sighed, seeing the Wizard.

"It's not like you, Bilbo Baggins," The older man started, stepping around the fallen Dwarves and into the house. "To keep guests waiting at the door, especially two lovely ladies who have traveled for a long while." At hearing that, the Hobbit turned to look at the two women outside his door.

Like the others who had arrived that night, the two women introduced themselves.

"Helen,"

"And Emily,"

"At your service!"

After bowing, Emily gave the Hobbit a smile.

"I apologize for us showing up, unannounced." Unlike the Dwarves and Gandalf, who she suspected didn't warn Bilbo of his guests, she felt she needed to say such things. Helen felt the same way, and gave a nod of her agreement.

For a moment, the Hobbit just sat there staring at the women. Never before had he seen a she-Dwarf (or a Dwarf in general), but what shocked him more was the female Hobbit who stood before him in a very, un-Hobbit like manner. While the other women he knew preferred to stay at home or tend to their gardens, but Emily? Why, he had half the mind to assume she had been on a few adventures.

"Excuse me," Emily asked, looking at the Hobbit just a little concerned. "Are you alright?" Blinking, he realized he hadn't spoken, and that the other Dwarves had let themselves into his home.

"Oh!" His cheeks flushed slightly. "I'm sorry. Please come in." Stepping aside, he let them in. When inside, they politely asked him where it would be alright for them to put their things (surprising him with their manners) before joining the other Dwarves.

While they did so, Gandalf made sure to introduce them to each of the remaining Dwarves. Dwalin was a tall Dwarf, with a large dark brown beard and a bald head. Balin looked to be one of the oldest, with a snow white beard and a kind face. Fili, the second youngest, had long blonde hair and a rather unique mustache made of two braids. Kili was the final, and youngest, with long hair like his brother though it was a dark brown. He also had no beard.

Despite this fact, when Helen meet the beardless Dwarf, she couldn't help a thought that came to mind. And that thought was, he was rather attractive.

Once introductions were done with, everyone got to making a meal, much to Bilbo's dismay. They began to carry plates of food from the pantry, setting everything down on a table that had been moved to the hall way. There were also a few he had brought out jugs of wine and ale, while others set the table.

"That's my wine." Bilbo cried, pulling up his braces as Bifur walked past with a jug of whine in his hands. "Excuse me!" Turing, the Dwarf began to speak to the Hobbit in Khuzdul. Emily happened to be near at that moment, and had a similar reaction to what he had said. Confusion.

"He's got an injury." Oin explained, coming up behind Bilbo. He had caught the look on both the Hobbits' faces and though he should explain.

"You mean from the axe in his head?" Bilbo questioned.

"Dead?" Oin said, holding up his ear trumpet. "No, only between his ears. his legs work fine." As he walked off, Emily went over to the Baggins.

"If it helps," She spoke. "I hadn't the slightest idea what either of them said." Giving a soft smile, she tried to reassure the other Hobbit. Sighing, Bilbo returned gesture, glad that some one felt just as confused as him. However, that feeling didn't last long. Soon he was back to trying to stop the Dwarves from taking all his food.

Mean while, Helen was watching with slight amusement as Fili and Kili tried to figure out where to move the ale barrel to. They would argue with each other where it should go, and the women couldn't help but laugh quietly at them. Unfortunately for her, the two brothers noticed this.

"Oi!" Fili glared at her.

"What are you laughing at?" Kili questioned, glaring as well. However, both glares were slightly playful.

"Nothing." She smirked, shaking her head. "Can't you two decided where to put the barrel?"

"No," Standing up, Kili crossed his arms over his chest. "We cannot."

"Perhaps you could give us some advice." Fili suggested, standing up as well. Pursing her lips for a moment, Helen thought about what he had said. Where should they put the ale? Turning around, she glanced at the room left beside the table before nodding to herself.

"Right over there." She pointed to the spot she had seen, a proud smile on her lips. The two brothers looked to where she pointed, Kili smiling as they did.

"I told you that was where we should put it!" Fili simply rolled his eyes at his younger sibling as the two of them picked up the barrel. As they did, Gandalf walked out of the temporary dinning room to do a quick head count.

"Uh, Fili, Kili." Both Dwarves gave a quick nod. "Uh, Oin, Gloin. Dwalin, Balin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur." He counted on his fingers. "Dori, Nori. Ori!" He chuckled as he asw Bilbo and the young Dwarf fight over a basket of tomatoes. "And Emily, Helen." He finished with the two new women. That would have made their company fifteen, sixteen including himself and seventeen if Bilbo chose to join them.

Walking up to him, Bifur said something in Khuzdul, Gandalf nodding.

"Yes, you're quite right, Bifur." He had come to the same conclusion as the black haired Dwarf. "We appear to be one Dwarf short." In fact, they were missing the most important Dwarf in their company.

"He is late, is all." Dwalin explained. "He traveled north to a meeting of our kin. He will come." He reassured. Nodding, Gandalf understood. It appeared they would need to wait for their leader.


	6. Chapter Four

_**Chapter Four- Blunt the Knives**_

"Come on!" Kili said, pulling Helen by the arm. Fili had managed to do the same with Emily. They pulled the two women to the table, and had them sit between them. Not long after, all the Dwarves were stuffing their faces.

Emily tried to hide a slightly disgusted expression as she watched them eat, nibbling on her own meal. Helen acted in a similar way, though ate more of her food than her friend. After all, she was a Dwarf and understood why they were hungry. While they ate, the Dwarves chatted loudly with each other.

"No chance. Not from that distance." Dwalin called out Bofur, who had said his brother could catch a potato in his mouth. From all the way across the table.

"Wanna bet?" The strange hat wearing Dwarf smirked. "Bombur catch!" He threw the food across the table, and the large Dwarf caught it in his house easily. The whole table erupted in cheers, and the women even found themselves smiling.

Soon, food was being thrown across the table to different Dwarves.

"Who wants and ale?" Getting up, Fili went and got multiple mugs filled with ale. Walking on the table, he handed them out. "There you go."

"Over here brother!" Kili called, getting three. One for himself, and the other two for the women. Glancing down at it, Helen and Emily shared a look. It wasn't like they hadn't had alcohol before, but they knew Dwarves were quite fond of it. And they doubted they could drink as much of them.

Despite this, when Bofure yelled "Ale on the count of three!" they made sure to at least sip some of the ale. The Dwarves, how ever, downed theirs. The ale even escaped their mouths, rolling down their beards. It took all Emily's strength to not gag while she drank her own.

Soon enough, their mugs were empty, and they started belching. Nori went first, followed by a few others then Ori. The young Dwarf let a loud belch loose, causing everyone to laugh. Suddenly feeling an urge to one up them, Helen gave Emily a smirk. The Hobbit was wary of her friend, but knew what she was feeling.

Quickly swallowing a couple large gulps of ale, the she-Dwarf took a deep breath and let out a belch even louder and longer than Ori's. As soon as she did, the entire table quieted. Needless to say, none of them had expected to here such things from the woman. How ever, a snort interrupted the silence. And it came from Emily.

"That sounded disgusting." Though she spoke with such repulsed words, she couldn't help but laugh. The look on the male Dwarves faces was hilarious. Soon, everyone was laughing.

"Never would have though you had that in you, lassie." Bofur complimented, in his own way.

* * *

Once dinner had been finished, the Dwarves and the women split up into little conversations. Some were in the kitchen, some in the dinning room and the rest all over the place.

Feeling a little guilty for how they were treating him, Emily went to go and apologize to the other Hobbit. Looking around, she found him in the kitchen, trying to hide.

"Biblo?" At hearing his name, the Baggins looked up, only to see the black haired woman.

"Emily." Standing up from the chair he had managed to keep away from the Dwarves, he looked at her with a little bit of concern. "Something wrong?" Now, though he was extremely bothered by his uninvited guests, he was still a gentleman.

"No..." Emily said slowly, playing with her hands slightly. "I wanted to apologize." That caused Bilbo's look of concern to shift to confusion.

"What for?" He didn't see why she would need to apologize.

"Our behavior." She said, looking up from her hands. "I know that you weren't expecting anyone to come over." He nodded a little, seeing as it was true. "And the fact that we're making a mess can't help." _No, not really. _He admitted to himself. "So, on behalf of everyone, I'm sorry." She finished, giving a small smile.

Now, Bilbo was shocked. In his eyes, the Dwarves (not including Helen) were the ones causing problems for him. Not the young woman. But the fact that she had taken the time to apologize for them. Well, he found it rather... refreshing in a way. That was why, he returned the smile.

"Oh, please. You don't need to do that." He reassured. "It not your fault." Emily's smile widened a little, causing Bilbo to do the same. However, that smile soon left when he saw Dori walk past him, something in his hand.

"Excuse me," He called, walking after the Dwarf. "That is a doily, not a dishcloth." As he walked off, Emily shook her head and laughed lightly before walking off to go talk with Ori. From what she could remember, he liked to write.

Mean while, Helen was sitting at the table with Balin. After dinner he had said he wanted to talk to her.

"So, lassie." He started, taking a drag of his pipe. "Gandalf said you and your friend were joining us." Even though he was being polite, Helen could tell he wasn't quite so sure if he could trust them. It seemed most of the older Dwarves were like that too.

"Yup." She nodded, looking down at her mug. The two were quiet till she sighed. "He said he would help us find my sister and friend." That caught Balin's attention.

"Your sister?" He asked, now curious. At first, he had thought the Wizard had promised the two of them a share of the treasure. But now, he wanted to know more. Before she knew it, Helen was telling the older Dwarf everything that she and Emily told Gandalf. When she was done, the both sat in silence again. After a moment though, Balin spoke.

"Don't worry lassie. We'll help you find your sister," He gave her a smile and a nod. "And your friend." Smiling, Helen nodded in thanks. Not a moment later, they hears some yelling.

"That's my mother's West Farthing pottery." Bilbo shouted. "It's over 100 years old!" He had been ranting to Gandalf when Ori came over, Emily behind him, asking what to do with his plate. Fili had ended up grabbing it, and tossing it to Kili. Before the Hobbit knew it, all his dishes were being thrown through the air.

At the table, Oin, Gloin, Bofur and Nori were hitting the forks and knives on each other.

"And can you not do that?" Bilbo asked, slowly becoming distressed. "You'll blunt them."

"Ooh. Do you hear that, lads?" Bofur asked, enjoying himself. "He says we'll blunt the knives." From where they were, Emily and Helen shared a look. Even though they couldn't remember much from the book or movies, they remembered the song that was about to be sung.

And just like they knew, Kili started it.

_"Blunt the knives, bend the forks" _

Fili joined in as well."

_"Smash the bottles and burn the corks"_

Soon the others started to sing as well.

_"Chip the glasses and crack the plates_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!"_

No before long, the Dwarves were beating on pots and pans, while others played instruments.

_"Cut the cloth, tread on the fat_

_Leave the bones on the bedroom met_

_Pour the milk on the pantry floor_

_Splash the wine on every door."_

Soon more plates, mugs and cups were flying through the air. Grinning, both Emily and Helen clapped their hands and stomped their feet in time to the song.

_"Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl_

_Pound them up with a thumping pole_

_When you're finished if they are whole_

_Send them down the hall to roll."_

Walking over, a grin on his face, Kili grabbed Helen by the hand and pulled her up. She gave him a curious look, but it was soon replaced with a large smile as he danced with her. It wasn't really orginized, and mostly consisted of him twirling her about. Either way, they both laughed.

Off the to the side, Emily laughed lightly too. It was great to see Helen enjoying her self. As the Dwarfs continued to play their music, dishes were still flying through the air. Bilbo ran about, hoping to catch any thing that might drop.

_"That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!" _

They finished, laughing at the expression on the Hobbits face. Well, everyone but Emily. She was actually trying hard not to smile, wanting to be polite. Standing in the center of the crowd, Gandalf gave Bilbo a smile, though their cheer was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"He is here." Gandalf announced.

Everyone knew who it was, even Helen and Emily. The two women shared a look, immediately having the same thought. How would he react to the two of them?


End file.
